1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image database system for storing a large quantity of medical image information photographed by a modality device such as a CT device and an MRI device as electronic information and for being useful for diagnosis.
2. Description of the Related Art
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (JP-A) No. 2002-245173discloses a medical image control system which subjects a plurality of image servers for storing medical image generated in a plurality of modality devices to network connection and controls a large quantity of medical images stored in the plurality of image servers. The medical image control system can detect and display a desired medical image at high speed from a plurality of medical image storage servers connected to the network. The medical image control system comprises an integrated control server containing detection means, data base means and control means. The detection means detects a first retrieval information concerning the medical image stored in a plurality of image servers regularly at prescribed time intervals. The data base means adds information concerning the image server to the first retrieval information detected by the detection means when the first retrieval information detected does not exist in a second retrieval information which has been already registered, and registers the information as the second retrieval information. The control means controls a large quantity of medical images stored in the plurality of image servers on the network based on the second retrieval information registered in the data base means. The medical image control system can rapidly access to a desired image server through the integrated control server.
For example, this type of the network is explained by using an OSI (Open Systems Interconnection) reference standard model. A physical layer and data link layer of the network are constituted by Ethernet (registered trade name), and a transport layer and a network layer are constituted by TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol). High order layers of a session layer or more are constituted by a DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communication for Medicine) protocol which is an image diagnostic standard in a medical field. The medical images are stored and controlled as a DICOM image comprising tag information and image data in each image server (DICOM server) through the network, and are interpreted and browsed by using an image viewer (DICOM viewer) for exclusive use.
However, according to the DICOM protocol in the conventional image database system as described above, the image data is essentially treated in a non-compression state. In addition, a communication procedure is complicated from the viewpoint of the protection of the tag information or the like, and it takes a time for data communication. Thereby, it is necessary to improve an image search response or the like. In particular, a lot of viewers are also set in a large-scale hospital, and the increase of network load causes the additional reduction of response.
In the above system, a large quantity of medical image data is respectively controlled by a plurality of different image servers for every modality device. The medical image data is backed up by a different system in a different media for every image server which is manufactured by a different manufacturer and is different model. Thereby, a problem exists in the control of the image data as a whole system is inadequate.
The image viewer connected to the above network may be set in an operating room, and may be used as an assistance of an operation. A request exists in that the reliability of the image viewer must be fully guaranteed.